


Sorting the Swallows, Amazons, and Ds

by Elennare



Category: Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome
Genre: Meta, Sorting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-08
Updated: 2015-05-08
Packaged: 2018-03-29 12:57:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,246
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3897166
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elennare/pseuds/Elennare
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Because all characters ever must be sorted into Hogwarts Houses, and I don't think anyone has sorted this lot.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sorting the Swallows, Amazons, and Ds

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the "school" challenge at fan_flashworks.

Because absolutely nobody asked, I decided to sort the Swallows and Amazons kids into Hogwarts houses. I also sorted the Ds, but not the rest of the Coots because I haven’t read those books so much or in a while. All opinions are most welcome! (Also, thanks to cadencekismet with whom I discussed sorting them was-it-really-that-long ago).  
  
Nancy Blackett - the first thing I thought (and I expect others agree) was ‘Gryffindor! Duh!’. But, because if you don’t overanalyze things to death it’s no fun (:P), I considered it a bit more. Ravenclaw wasn’t really a contender - Nancy doesn’t seem to care much about learning for learning’s sake, and even when it’s something she’s interested in like the mining in  _Pigeon Post_  she’s content to take on the active parts and leave the reading to Dick. Hufflepuff? She is very loyal to her sister, and to the Swallows; she’s willing to work hard for something she wants… but on the other hand, she’s not particularly honest - it’s actually pointed out as a contrast to the Swallows and John especially, how she’s far more willing to bend the truth or even outright lie, how she enjoys things more when there’s subterfuge. Which leads nicely into Slytherin - Nancy’s certainly cunning, look at all her maneuvering around the Great Aunt. She’s ambitious, always wanting to be the leader (and generally taking over). But I feel a Slytherin would be more naturally subtle than Nancy is. Things like declaring war on the Swallows without ever setting eyes on them, or exploding a Roman candle on Captain Flint’s roof and later giving him the Black Spot, are just pure Gryffindor bravado. Nancy lives and breathes adventure. Gryffindor it is!  
  
Peggy Blackett - is remarkably complicated. The Amazons I feel get rather less narration than the Swallows, and Peggy less than Nancy, so we tend to see her through other people’s eyes rather than her own. Even in _Winter Holiday_  where she does narrate a fair bit, she’s mostly trying to be Nancy as hard as she can! Anyway. Wanting to be Nancy / live up to Nancy’s expectations for her is a major theme in Peggy’s personality, and that strikes me as a Hufflepuff-type loyalty. But obviously it would also lead to her begging the Hat to put her in Gryffindor… and honestly, I do think Peggy is braver than she gives herself credit for - look at the storm in Swallows and Amazons, when she sits up and talks even as it’s thundering nonstop because she can’t show she’s scared in front of a child like Roger. And even though she ultimately doesn’t sleep in Fram in  _Winter Holiday_ , she tries; if Susan and John had stayed, she would have. So possibly Gryffindor, though whether it would be better for her to be in a different House from Nancy is a good question (and yet, which? She’s no more honest or learning-inclined than Nancy, and rather less ambitious I’d say… I feel Hufflepuff is more likely than Ravenclaw or Slytherin, but I’m not sure).  
  
John Walker - who always protects his siblings, who is honest to a fault - look how terribly hurt he is over Captain Flint calling him a liar, how he tells his mother about the night sailing (I wonder how much Molly ever heard about that? I suspect if she did it was through Mary, not the Amazons). John who wants to join the Navy, which would require loyalty, discipline, hard work. Who tries his best to be fair, even when he’s angry - like with the mapping in  _Secret Water_ , when he thinks it won’t be finished; he starts blaming other people (in his head) but then excuses them, and ultimately blames himself. John is Hufflepuff, no question.  
  
Susan Walker - her defining characteristic is responsibility and taking care of the rest. If it weren’t for her they’d never be allowed to do everything they do, and with good reason, they’d probably all get scurvy or something… She backs Nancy and John up against adults even against her better judgement, because she’s loyal to them and to the group. She’s every bit as protective and honest as John is. Again, Hufflepuff.  
  
Titty Walker - another very complicated one! Hufflepuff: Titty is fiercely loyal to the Swallows and Amazons, and again she tries to be fair. Ravenclaw: she’s vividly imaginative and curious, and somehow I can see Luna Lovegood appreciating Peter Duck. She also seems to read and understand a lot, especially given how young she is. Gryffindor: she volunteers to stay alone on the island at night, pulls off the capture of the Amazon, makes herself do the dowsing alone (side note, dowsing. Accidental childhood magic anyone?)… I’m pulled slightly in the direction of Gryffindor, but I could see her being a Hatstall, and I’m not at all sure what she’d want to be.  
  
Roger Walker - is, I think, the most individualistic of the lot. I’m pretty sure he’s the only one we see getting bored of whatever the group is doing and just going off to do his own thing (scouting across the line leading to his finding the “gold” in  _Pigeon Post_ , getting into an argument with the Gaels in  _Great Northern?_ ). When Susan’s planning meals for the group, he’s just worried about his chocolate :P He doesn’t get much chance to show great ambition with three older siblings plus the Amazons around (and he is very young), but he very much makes the most out of any achievements like discovering the gold… I’m going to say Slytherin - with should-be-obvious-disclaimer that Slytherin is not bad and I very much like Roger!  
  
Bridget Walker - I’m not going to go into massive detail because really Bridget doesn’t get much of a part in the books, and she is very young (4 or 5) during  _Secret Water_  which is her shining hour. But I will say that a child that young who was less worried than excited about being kidnapped by the Eels, and volunteered to be a ‘human sacrifice’, strikes me as very much a potential Gryffindor!  
  
Dorothea Callum - is not as learning-oriented as Dick, but she lives in her imagination and romanticises things as much as Titty, though in a different way, which could be Ravenclaw (also she solves the mystery in  _Big Six_ , and being from an academic family she might want to be Ravenclaw). But she’s also extremely loyal, first to her brother who she’s always looking after, then to the Swallows Amazons and Ds, and the Coots; she works hard at learning sailing and morse code and so on; she loves being part of a group, like in  _Winter Holiday_  when she’s so eager to join the Swallows and Amazons… I think ultimately she’s Hufflepuff.  
  
Dick Callum - who wants to know everything about everything, sometimes for applying it but often just for the sake of knowing it. Who is so terribly, terribly upset about Mr Jemmerling who he thought was a proper scientist actually being an egg-collector and a bird hunter… Dick is Ravenclaw through and through. (Before anyone brings up Hermione as an objection, Hermione herself says that she values bravery more than books, and that’s what makes her Gryffindor. Dick I think truly values learning more than anything else).  
  
  
TLDR: Nancy Blackett Gryffindor, Peggy Blackett Gryffindor (or possibly Hufflepuff), John Walker Hufflepuff, Susan Walker Hufflepuff, Titty Walker probably Gryffindor, Roger Walker Slytherin, Bridget Walker potential Gryffindor, Dorothea Callum Hufflepuff (or possibly Ravenclaw), Dick Callum Ravenclaw.  
  
Thoughts? Please share!


End file.
